Microwave antenna
In a microwave antenna a dielectric carrier having a strip line is provided. A funnel-shaped or horn shaped waveguide radiator is integrated into a metallic cover, and it is situated above the strip line. A transformation element is provided for the transition from the strip line to the aperture of the waveguide radiator.
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The present invention relates to a microwave antenna comprising a dielectric carrier having at least one strip line, a waveguide radiator being situated above the strip line.
BACKGROUND INFORMATIONA multilayered dielectric carrier having strip lines is known from Japanese Patent Application No. JP-08 125 432 A. A horn-type radiator is coupled to a strip line via a slot in the dielectric carrier. The coupling via the slot requires costly processing of the strip line dielectric carrier. In particular, costly and cost-intensive milling operations have to be carried out in order to remove printed circuit board material.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTIONUsing the principles of the present invention, i.e. a dielectric carrier having at least one strip line, a metallic cover situated over the dielectric carrier and on its strip line side, into which at least one especially funnel-shaped or horn-shaped waveguide radiator is integrated, the base or the exciter end of the funnel-shaped or horn-shaped microwave radiator being situated above one of the strip lines, a transformation element over the strip line for the transition from the strip line to the aperture of the waveguide radiator, it is possible to implement a simple design which does not require any costly processing techniques. Since the foundation or the exciter end of the funnel-shaped or horn-shaped waveguide radiator is situated over a strip line, which, especially at the front end of the dielectric carrier and therewith directly, faces the waveguide radiator, it becomes unnecessary to have an otherwise usual window in the HF earth plane in a slot-coupled patch antenna device which radiates in the direction of the backside of the dielectric HF carrier. The metallic cover provided anyway for the shielding of the antenna feeder circuit, having a required overall height (headroom), is used directly as a waveguide radiator. Into this cover, funnel-shaped or horn-shaped waveguide radiators are integrated making full utilization of its overall height. Since the waveguide opening is directly over the strip line, a construction comes about in which the strip line is turned into a sort of asymmetrical triplate strip line, which finally excites the opening of the waveguide (slot), at its base or exciter end, to oscillate.
Using the design of the present invention, bandwidths that are called for of ca 5 GHz may be implemented. Furthermore, via the geometrical embodiment of the horn/funnel, various angles of aperture in azimuth and elevation may be achieved.
An array of horn antennas or horn antenna apertures gives a similar performance to a slot-coupled patch antenna device which radiates in the direction of the backside of the HF printed circuit board.
Before describing the actual present invention, solutions are set forth, proposed up to the present, from which the present invention starts, and whose deficiencies it overcomes.
In the microwave antenna according to the present invention shown in section in
The antenna diagram is therefore symmetrical, by contrast to
By other geometrical embodiments of the funnel or horn, one may achieve various angles of aperture in azimuth in elevation.
Because of the design according to the present invention, microstrip line 2 goes over into a sort of asymmetrical triplate strip line, which finally excites the lower opening (slot) of waveguide radiator 4 or the horn antenna to oscillation.
In the exemplary embodiment according to
Waveguide radiators 4 are able to be used as transmitting and receiving antennas. Arrays having a different number of individual elements for transmitting and receiving directions may also be provided, so that one may achieve targeted antenna characteristics for special application functions, such as stop and go, precrash, blind spot detection, parking assistant, help for driving in reverse, keyless entry, etc.
Transformation element 5 may be designed as a fin-line or as a step transformer having line segments of the length λ/4.
Besides waveguide radiators 4, structures 7, especially crosspieces, may be integrated into cover 3, in order to form screen chambers above each individual waveguide radiator 4, especially an array. Both the waveguide radiators and structures 7 may be produced in one operation during production of the cover, for instance, by extrusion technology.
In the embodiment according to
Claims
1. A microwave antenna comprising:
- a dielectric carrier having at least one strip line;
- a cover, the cover being one of metallic and metalized, the cover being situated above the dielectric carrier on a strip line side, at least one waveguide radiator being integrated into the cover, the waveguide radiator being one of substantially funnel-shaped and horn-shaped, one of a base and an exciter end of the waveguide radiator being situated above the strip line; and
- a transformation element situated above the strip line for a transition from the strip line to an aperture of the waveguide radiator.
2. The microwave antenna according to claim 1, wherein the transformation element includes a dielectric element, whose underside is situated above the strip line, a distance of the underside from the strip line becoming less in a direction of an aperture of the waveguide radiator.
3. The microwave antenna according to claim 1, wherein the transformation element has one of (a) a shape of a circular segment and (b) a stepwise shape, a thickness of the transformation element being adjusted to a width of the strip line.
4. The microwave antenna according to claim 1, wherein the transformation element borders at one end face surface on an outer wall of the waveguide radiator, and borders at an additional end face surface on an inner wall of the cover.
5. The microwave antenna according to claim 1, wherein the waveguide radiator has a rectangular cross section, a longer rectangular side being situated perpendicularly above a strip line longitudinal extension.
6. The microwave antenna according to claim 1, wherein the at least one waveguide radiator includes a plurality of waveguide radiators situated as an array in the cover in at least one of linear form and columnar form.
7. The microwave antenna according to claim 6, further comprising a separate cover associated with each of the waveguide radiators, designed as an SMD component, for at least one of soldering and adhering onto the dielectric carrier.
8. The microwave antenna according to claim 6, wherein the array having the plurality of waveguide rediators is situated in the cover as an SMD component for at least one of soldering and adhering onto the dielectric carrier.
9. The microwave antenna according to claim 1, wherein the cover, on an inside, has structures for forming shielding chambers.
Type: Grant
Filed: Oct 12, 2004
Date of Patent: Mar 28, 2006
Patent Publication Number: 20050104780
Assignee: Robert Bosch GmbH (Stuttgart)
Inventors: Frank Gottwald (Weissach), Tore Toennesen (Reutlingen), Dirk Steinbuch (Wimsheim)
Primary Examiner: Hoang V. Nguyen
Attorney: Kenyon & Kenyon LLP
Application Number: 10/964,397
International Classification: H01Q 13/00 (20060101);